Meet the noise makers

Foley artists are finally sharing their sound-effects secrets on Insta. Blood splash? It's a watermelon getting slashed. Punches? Someone hit a goat carcass. Listen up

- Taranna Khetpal

If you've spent any time on Instagram, you've probably seen Professor Puth, singer Charlie Puth's series that breaks down the basics of music. In episode 10, he explains how the human heart beats like a music track, its rhythm tied to music through life. "A baby's heartbeat is twice as fast as an adult's before birth about 140 to 160 bpm -quick and urgent. You know what else is urgent and primal? Dance music," he says. As we age and our heartbeat slows, the music we connect with changes too. Even film and ad scores are often composed to match that pulse, literally pulling on our heartstrings.

The right soundscape can make you buy something you don't need, convince you that a horrific scene has a comic side, and question what you're seeing. "It's what makes Tom Cruise hanging off a plane seem even more believable," says Ganesh Gangadharan, 47, a Mumbai-based sound designer. "You take in the heavy breathing, the scrape of his hands against metal, the rush of wind, and the roar of the plane." More sound artists are sharing their secrets on Reels and clips. And, judging by the Likes, we're all in awe.

The sound brew

India makes the job especially complicated. We're a noisy nation. Even indoor ambient sounds include the traffic jam filtering in, Alexa mishearing a command, and the ASMR of the cook preparing dinner. We take in and tune out more than we realise: The couple bickering at the next restaurant table, elevator dings carrying through the office floor, the cat covering its business in the adjoining bathroom.